Parking lease clears another hurdle in court

The City of Cincinnati picked up another win in its battle to outsource parking operations. A judge Thursday dismissed an injunction request filed by the Coalition Opposed to Additional Spending and Taxes (COAST).

The group charges the city manager changed the lease without getting council approval. But the city says the city manager acted within his duties.

City attorney Terry Nester further argued COAST had no standing to bring the case.

"To allow the case to proceed is to invite taxpayer intervention in any city contract and to obstruct the progress of business in the City of Cincinnati," says Nester.

"The General Assembly essentially said that taxpayers can and should hold city officials accountable and can do so through the courts," says Hartman. "That's what we're doing and have done. If you essentially can no longer apply the law that the General Assembly passed, you essentially no longer have city officials that can be held accountable."

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The Ohio Supreme Court has declined jurisdiction in the Cincinnati parking lease case. City Solicitor John Curp confirmed that in an e-mail Wednesday morning.

The case involved whether city voters had a right to place the issue on the ballot. A Hamilton County Common Pleas judge said it could go on the ballot, but an Ohio appeals courts overturned that decision. The appeals court said the city could pass the parking lease as emergency ordinance and avoid referendum.

Just as the Port Authority is putting finishing touches on Cincinnati's parking plan, the organization opposing it, COAST, has filed a request for a Temporary Restraining Order.

Spokesman Chris Finney says, "When the decision came down from the Court of Appeals, and the City Manager signed the lease, he made material changes to it without Council approval." Finney says he is not permitted to do this so "council either needs to re-vote, or the lease must be enjoined." (stopped by judicial order)

The residents who opposed Cincinnati's controversial parking lease are asking the Ohio Supreme Court to hear the case.

Attorneys filed a notice of appeal Monday and a motion asking for an expedited schedule for the matter.

In June, the Ohio First District Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Cincinnati on the proposed parking lease to the Port Authority. In a two-to-one opinion the panel said the lease agreement Council passed in March is not subject to a voter referendum, because it was passed as an emergency ordinance.